JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – No. 14 Carson-Newman returns to Rocky Top for a Halloween exhibition contest with the Tennessee Lady Volunteers tomorrow evening at 6:30 p.m.
"It's always a great opportunity to go and play on that stage," Carson-Newman women's basketball head coach Mike Mincey said. "It's just a different environment with everything that goes into it with the crowd. Obviously, they are always really good and its always going to be a tough matchup for us regardless of who the coach is. It's a great opportunity for us to be on the floor with them. It's going to be a different animal this year with the new coaching staff and style of play."
Carson-Newman is hoping for more of the same success that it had in 2023-24, as it readies for the upcoming season. This past year, the Lady Eagles made the NCAA Tournament for the 13th time in program history and the sixth time in the past seven seasons, earning a number two seed in the Southeast region their highest ranking since being the top seed in 2018. C-N had success in the postseason, winning its first two NCAA Tournament games to earn their third trip to the Sweet 16 and regional title game.
Mike Mincey's team was one of the best rebounding teams in the country last season, grabbing 43 boards per game, the 11th most in DII. The offense dished out 17 assists per game, the sixth-best nationally and scored 76.3 points, which was 12th highest.
The Eagles only lose 30% of their scoring from this past season, all of which mainly came from the program's all-time leading scorer Braelyn Wykle, who also graduates as the program's all-time leader in three-pointers made. Back is All-SAC forward Lindsey Taylor, who scored 14.7 points on average and led the rebounding effort with seven per night. Taylor was the fifth-most efficient scorer in the country, making 60% of her shots. Three other starters return from a NCAA Tournament team, featuring 1,000-point scorer Campbell Penland who averaged 10 points per game and is sixth all-time in three-pointers made with 163.
Tennessee has won each exhibition game and scored triple digits in 14 of the 18 meetings. UT took this past season's meeting 105-72. Carson-Newman was extremely efficient from the field, making 48.3% of its shots in the game. The 72 points were the second-most scored in an exhibition game against the Lady Vols all-time.
It's a series between the two schools that dates back all the way to 1920, when the Lady Eagles defeated the Lady Vols 14-13. UT has won 30 meetings in a row since C-N won last on Feb 9, 1925.
The Lady Volunteers begin a new era this season after the hiring of Kim Caldwell earlier this spring. The first-year head coach inherits a roster that features six experienced players that return from last season, including two 33-game starters Jewel Spear and Sara Puckett. Tennessee was also able to add five Power-4 level additions from the transfer portal as well as a pair of highly thought of redshirts.
Caldwell possesses a 217-31 (.875) career record between seven seasons at DII Glenville State and this past season at Marshall University. She guided those previous teams to eight NCAA Tournaments in as many years, including a pair of NCAA DII Final fours and a 2022 NCAA DII National Championship. This past season, she directed the Thundering Herd to its first NCAA Tournament berth since 1997 and won both the Sun Belt regular season and conference titles.
In what is now a 16-team Southeastern Conference, Tennessee was predicted to finish seventh. The Lady Vols are coming off a 20-13 campaign in 2023-24, going 10-6 in league action.
Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. Coverage on the Eagle Sports Network begins at 6:15 with the AEC Countdown to Tipoff on MIX 105.5 (WSEV-FM, Sevierville) and online at cneagles.com/live.
